The Miracle of Giving

By: Nathan Osmond

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life but what we give.”

–Winston Churchill

We’ve all heard the term, “Charity never faileth” or “What goes around, comes around,” but what exactly does that mean? Does the way you treat others really have a dramatic impact on your life? Experience will teach you that it does.

My friend David Bach, the author of many New York Times bestsellers including the best selling book, Automatic Millionaire, once told me, “Out of all of the millionaires and billionaires that I have ever studied, the one and only thing that any of them had in common was that they all gave back before they were wealthy and continued to do so afterwards.” Interesting! I guess that’s why Anne Frank said, “No one has ever become poor by giving.”

Albert Einstein said, “It is every man’s obligation to put back into the world at least the equivalent of what he takes out of it.” I have been extremely blessed and understand that I can’t take it with me when I leave this earth. My friend RG Williams asked me the other day, “What do you want to be remembered for?” I would like you to extend that question to you, the reader. What legacy do you want to leave? Mr. Williams is a very successful man and one of the reasons is that he has taken to heart the words of Zig Ziglar whose maxim has always been, “If you help enough people get in life what they want, you will get what you want.” This is the secret to success in any situation. Always think in terms of win/win.

My friend Bob Kittell once told me, “If you’re ever feeling down or depressed, go do something for someone else. You can’t give kindness away.” I put his words to the test when I was boy. My mother asked my brothers and me to go outside and help clear the snow from my grandparent’s driveway. I was of course not too thrilled with the task that lay ahead of me. However, as I started to give of my time to my grandparents, something came over me. I felt a joy in my heart that can only be felt when you are in the service of another. One of my favorite books says that, “When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.” As I finished shoveling the walkway, I told my brothers, “Let’s go shovel the neighbor’s walkway. It’s not that big.” Before we knew it, we had shoveled nearly the entire block. I felt so warm inside, and it wasn’t because of my winter coat. I went outside with a negative attitude but came back inside a different person. It was a very rewarding moment to a young boy.

Spencer W. Kimball once said, “God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs. Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom. . . . So often, our acts of service consist of simple encouragement or of giving mundane help with mundane tasks, but what glorious consequences can flow from mundane acts and from small but deliberate deeds!”

Edmund Burke said, “Nobody makes a greater mistake that he who does nothing because he could do so little.” I believe that even the smallest act of kindness has a rippling effect. Like the Goo Goo Dolls sing, “Give a little bit!!!” A little bit goes a long way!

To learn how you can start giving back, go to www.uplej.com/nathanosmond and join my uPlej network. Together we can become somebody’s silent hero.